A New Leaf
by Zidiane
Summary: Ever wonder what it'd be like for Naruto's kids to grow up and become ninja's? or how about Shikimaru's? Hinata's, Sakura's, Kiba's? Anko's? this is a future-fic where the main cast takes a back seat as the next generation steps up for the spot light.


I do not currently own Naruto or its copyrights, but there are currently plans in motion. Plans of which I can not further discuss. Lets just say... when the dust settles, I will have the last laugh.

FIRST OFF! this is labeled a Naruto & Hanabi story because they play two of the biggest roles out of the old cast.

Hey, all! this story will be awesome. I'm sorry if you were expecting this story to be about Naruto, or Hinata, or Sakura, or Kakashi, or Shikimaru. Cause it's not. This story is about their children (not with each other (no shiki/kaka babies)) and how they become genin, and go through their ninja career. But, yeah, this story will be epic! Don't expect me to just repeat the events of the manga, or do anything like what I did for my other story Team Naruto (save for the awesome), this is an entirely new story of the likes no one has seen before! And if you've read my story Team Naruto, imagine the story like this... downside? Unfamiliar characters with that spark of familiarity from their parents that doesn't completely alienate you from them. Upside? I know what I'm doing from the start, have 250k+ words worth of experience, and have enough confidence in my abilities to not be hesitant with events. I'm sorry if it sounds biased, or arrogant, but this is going to be one hell of a story! But, before we start, I have to explain some things, basic changes I am making or things you need to know before you read.

This fic is set in the "Z-verse". What's the Z-verse? It's a special universe that exists in my mind. Multiple versions of pre-existing characters live in this universe. That's where this fic takes place.

Z-verse changes/things you need to know(where I will be describing how this world differs from the mainstream):

This story will be set about 15-18 years after the events that are currently taking place in Naruto (in the middle of the ninja war).

The children used for this story were a part of another story I have (Strongest Love). However, because I needed them all to be the same age (give or take a year), I would have had to cut some of my favorite ones. I decided I didn't like that. So, in this universe, both Naruto and Shikamaru have two wives (Hinata and Sakura, Temari and Ino). Back in ancient times people would essentially have multiple wives. They were called concubines, but they had less privileges. The term 'Concubine' seems much too offensive for any of these characters, and with all of the crap Kishimoto makes them go through (making them useless, and all around wasting their potential), I figured I'd just do them a solid and call them 'Wives'. Both second wives have the same privileges as the first, and I probably won't even mention who is the first wive.

Naruto is not Hokage. Tsunade is holding onto the job so Naruto can enjoy his family first, but everyone already recognizes him as the 6th (Danzo was considered a temporary hokage (like a vice president)).

I gave Tenten and Temari the last names Nagamaki and Sabaku, respectively.

the age of all the kids are 15 (except Tessen and Sayani, they are 16). i raised the age level because i don't really think it's realistic to send twelve year olds on life and death missions and expect them to not die. also, giving them a higher age will allow me to move more freely when creating scenes and events, and i'll be able to use more adult things. i can also use their hormones, whereas 12-13 year olds don't have any.

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><p>Konoha. The land of fire. One of the most privileged ninja villages to ever exist. It has bred many heroes, many men and women who have given everything they had to protect their village. However, like in the case of Uzumaki Naruto, that doesn't mean losing your life. Ever since Uzumaki Naruto first became a ninja, when he first earned his Hitai-ate, the headband he wears proudly to this day, he has shown great potential. He has saved his home village with the help of his closest friends several times so far in his short life, he has saved his village on his own, he has saved other villages, he became the hero of the fifth ninja war, he has personally saved all of the Kage's lives at lease once with the exception of the Tsuchikage. But, even so, even with accomplishments stacking higher than the Hokage tower, time moves on. Time passes, and so must the torch. Down to the next generation, to the inheritors of the "Will Of Fire". To the next inheritors of this villages hopes, dreams, and strengths, this story is dedicated to them. To their story. A story no one has ever heard before, ever seen before, or could ever predict. And this story starts here, in this humble home, as a young boy prepares in his room, ready for his first day as a Konoha Shinobi.<p>

* * *

><p>Today's the day! The day I finally start becoming a real ninja! Finally! The moment I've waited my entire life for! I don't think I ever really thought I wouldn't be able to handle it, I always knew I could make it, it's just... the moments finally here!<p>

I look up into the mirror. It's... well, it's me obviously. My name is Uzumaki Nagaku. My hair, a dark blue color, is straight as it comes down just past my chin, and I'm wearing my ninja outfit. I have a big, loose, hooded sweatshirt. It helps me feel a little more protected when I'm talking to people. I'm sort of... shy, I guess is the word. I feel uncomfortable when I have to interact with people I'm not personally close to, and the sweatshirt helps. I don't really wear the hood, even though it helps me feel more comfortable, because my parents say it's important to build up a tolerance to others. The sweater is white with medium sized gray patches on it, too. Two covering the front pockets, two on my elbows, two on my shoulders, one on my chest, and one larger patch on my back. In the center of that gray patch on my back is my family (Uzumaki) crest, a dark red color. I'm also wearing my favorite pants. Their loose, too, and they got all the way to my ankles, and they're white with gray patches too. Those patches cover the knees, the back side of both my forelegs, and two more on the side where the pockets of the pants are.

After staring at myself for a while, I head back into my room. On my bed, in its own special little case, I see my very own Hitai-ate... a headband, not too different from what my mothers and father wore when they became Genin. It shone proudly in the morning light bursting through my bedroom window. It almost feels like its destined to be on my forehead. Like this very headband was made just for my head, for me and only me to wear...

"Gaku!" I heard my big sister shout from downstairs. She was naturally impatient, so I normally try to get things done quickly for her, but this feels too special to just be rushed through.

"I'm almost ready, Yani!" I yelled back, feeling a slight tremble in my voice. Uncertainty? Am I really ready for this...? Of course I am...

I hear her sigh. "Mommy, Gaku is taking too long!" I hear her complain. "We're going to be late if he doesn't hurry up!"

I pick up my Hitai-ate, carefully raising it to my forehead. It felt... not exactly heavy, but it had a comfortable weight. Almost like a kunai, but different. It's hard to explain.

"We only have 5 minutes!" I heard her, my sister, explain to our parents. "We want to leave early so we can avoid Tessen! We also want to get there early for the back seats, Gaku can't sit in the front! And I have to make our lunch, so that all needs about 15 minutes if I hurry!"

I quickly tied my Hitai-ate around my head and made my way out of my room. I wanted to savor this moment as long as I could, but I guess it's time to go. As I reach the stairway, I hear my father talking.

"Maybe it's, uh..." he starts, but pauses for a moment. "Maybe it's time you let Gaku do things on his own now that he's a Shinobi?"

"What do you mean!" she shouts. "Gaku is way too young to do anything by himself! He needs his big sister! I need to help him, I need to protect him just in case something happens he can't handle!"

"Well... yeah, but-" our father tried again, but Yani cut him off again.

"And isn't it YOU who's always talking about always being there to protect the ones you care about?"

"She got you there, honey," our mother added, "But Yani, I think your father just means you should let him grow up a little on his own, that's all."

"...but what if I leave him alone and someone tries to bully him, or if he gets hurt! If he got hurt when I could have helped him, I'd never forgive myself." It was quiet for a moment, then I heard Yani's voice again. "GAKU! Do I need to help you get dressed?"

"NO!" I responded, a bit startled by the sudden attention, "I'm done, I'm done! I'll be down in a second!" I went down the stairs moments after my words, and saw them. My family, or half of it, in the kitchen to the left of the stairs.

My big sister, Uzumaki Sayani, was standing just inside the kitchen. She has long, straight, dark blue hair. It comes down to around the middle of her stomach. She also has pale skin, unlike mine (which had a slightly more tanned color). Her eyes, the same as mine, are a pale lavender, signifying us as children with the Byakugan bloodline. She is also wearing her favorite outfit. She wore a dark yellow light sweater, one with big pockets, a hood, and a zipper down the front. It was unzipped and the hood was down, like it always was. She wore a red t-shirt underneath it that matched the baggy red shorts she had on. Both the shirt and the shorts had dark yellow stripes (the matching shade to the sweater) down the sides, but only the stripes on the shorts were visible due to the sweater. There was also our family crest on the back of her sweater, identical to the one on my back, a red swirl for the Uzumaki clan. The latest, and shiniest part of her outfit was the Hitai-ate she wore around her neck.

My mother and father were also there, sitting at the kitchen table. My father was eating his morning ramen, and my mother was rustling through a brown packing box. I stood in the kitchen doorway, wearing my new Hitai-ate on my forehead with pride. "Good morning Yani, Mommy, Daddy."

"Found it! Perfect timing, Gaku." our mother called, pulling up from her box with a camera in her hand.

"Alright," our father started, having just polished off the noodles, "we're going to take your picture outside for your first day being a ninja, so get ready!" he says, taking the camera from our mother.

"Um..." I tried, but Yani dragged me through the front door before I could say anything more. We stopped outside on our grassy lawn. The sunlight was pretty strong today, but there were a few clouds in the sky. When our parents caught up with us outside, I continued what I was saying. "Where's Momma?"

"You would've seen her too if hadn't taken so long!" Yani scolded, waving a disciplinary index finger at me. I shrunk away from her slightly before looking back to our Dad.

"Yeah, sorry Gaku," he said, fiddling with the camera as he tried to make it work. "Momma had to leave early. There was an emergency at the hospital, and she was the only one who could help. She said she should be there to see you just before you leave with your Jounin Sensei though, she won't miss this. Okay?" I nodded. Momma was always there for important things, so I'm sure she'll finish before its over. I look up to daddy again. He is still trying to get the camera to work. He's inspecting the lens when he accidentally takes a picture, setting off the flash at point blank range. "Ahhh!" he cries out, covering his eyes with his both hands and unintentionally dropping the camera.

"Honestly..." our mother mutters as she picks up the camera. After a few adjustments, she had the camera ready. "Get ready!" she said, motioning us to pose. Yani smiled and hugged me. I fought to get free for a moment, but eventually gave up and just hung there until she took the picture. "There!" she said, looking at the picture that slid out of the bottom of the camera. She smiled before handing it to our father, who looked like he had most of his sight back. He just smiled at it.

"HEY! Nagaku!" a new voice called out, drawing everyone's attention to the street.

A young girl, Inuzuka Tessen, stood there with a small purple-tinted dog running circles around her. She was wearing her new ninja outfit. Her shirt was strange, I personally don't know why she likes it, but she often says the same about my own clothes. Her red shirt was raised about 6 inches from her pants line. Her sleeves were short (or long, depending on how you looked at it) as they came down and met the bottom hem of her shirt evenly. It was also almost skin tight, and didn't look very comfortable. I would be absolutely convinced it was entirely uncomfortable and hard to move in if I hadn't seen how happy and swiftly she could move in it first hand during academy sparing sessions. Her stomach was also completely exposed; she had told me before, but she has a sensory issue with certain cloth texture's, and also can't have anything touching her stomach (she said it irritates and distracts her.) She also wore solid light gray shorts, much looser than her shirt, and black fingerless gloves. Her hair was done a bit differently, too. She had brown hair that came down just past her shoulders, very well groomed and neat looking hair, but now the right side had a hair clip pulling it away from her face. The clip was pretty small and ordinary, tinted a bright red that matched the two downward pointed red triangles on her cheeks (the mark of the Inuzuka). And her Headband was strapped around her leg over her shorts.

She motioned me towards her. "Come on, walk with me to the Academy, Nagaku!"

"Walk by yourself, Tessen!" Yani shouted, taking a protective stance in front of me.

"Who asked you, control freak! Don't you have some stuffed animals to be ordering around or something?"

I heard Yani growling as she trained a murderous glare at Tessen.

"Come on Yani..." I pleaded, "lets just go with her. Today's a good day, can you forgive her just for now?" Today was special, our first day as real ninja. Just for today, just one day, could they not argue?

"Urg..." Yani groaned, turning back to look at me in the eye. I could tell she didn't want to upset me, but... "N-no! Besides! I still need to make our food!"

"Here," I heard Mommy's voice call. We turned and saw her holding out two bags filled with what smelled like lunch. "What?" she asked, taken aback by her daughter's betrayed expression, "You told me yesterday you wanted to make it to the academy early today, so I made them to go."

"All set, then?" Tessen asked from behind us, her grin so wide it could be heard in her voice. It was the same tone she had every time Yani was forced to be around her. You know, until she realized she hated being around my sister too. It's like she enjoys messing with my sister so much that she forgets it's hurting her, too.

"Yeah..." Yani grumbled before heading towards Tessen, taking our lunch in one hand, and my hand in the other.

* * *

><p>The kids all headed down the road, towards the academy. So nostalgic, this whole thing reminds me of when I first got assigned to Team 7 with Kakashi. I turned to face my wife, who turned to face me at the same time. We stared at each other for a while, but suddenly she started chuckling.<p>

"What?" I asked, cocking one eyebrow and tilting my head.

"You're so embarrassing, Naruto-kun..." she whispered, reaching up and peeling a leftover noodle from my cheek.

"Oops..." I mumbled. I was almost hypnotized watching as she ate it, seductively sucking all traces of it from her fingers.

She said nothing, just walked back into the house, adding only the slightest sway to her hips.

"Uh... I still have an hour before I have to be there, right?" I thought out loud. My thoughts wandered momentarily to Sakura-hime, wondering if she would be able to see Yani and Gaku before they left, but I was brought back to my heavenly reality soon enough.

"Na~ru~to~kun~!" I heard her call from inside the house, around the top of the stairs on her way to the bedroom.

"Coming Hinata-hime!" I replied, feeling a grin split my face as I hurried into the house after her.

* * *

><p>We walked in silence (me, my sister, Tessen and her dog). Yani was still standing protectively in between me and Tessen: she didn't like Tessen very much, she didn't like how she tends to ignore her orders, and thought that if Tessen got too close to me it would endanger me somehow. I don't really understand how that could happen, but I know she only ever does what she thinks will help me.<p>

I looked over to them. They were glaring at each other, and I could swear I could see sparks flying where their glares clashed! I... will be the first to admit that I'm not the boldest ninja in the village, confrontation just makes me so nervous, but I can't stand to see them like this. At least until we get assigned our teams, I want us to be able to have a good time, so I spoke up. "So, Tessen, um... you're up pretty early, aren't you?" I ask, peeking around Yani to see her.

"Yeah, I guess, but Muramaru here really wanted to get going early today," she says, gesturing to the purple-tinted dog walking by her side. She yapped, overly excited by the sudden attention she was getting. "Running into you was just a bonus, Nagaku," she adds, almost like an afterthought, as she looked right into my eyes. It makes me feel a little awkward, and I bring my arms up and start fiddling with the left sleeve of my hooded jacket: my nervous habit. After a moment she looks back to Sayani. "Well... almost a bonus."

Yani makes a "tch" sounding noise as she folds her arms, looking away from Tessen.

"But what happened to your, um... your brother..." I ask, feeling almost confident with the low level of hostility between the two girls. Things are going pretty well, and there's only another minute or two until we reach the academy.

"He said he wanted to see if he could run into the Yamanaka twins before class, so we split up."

"What happened, Dog Breath," Yani adds, as if it was impossible to control herself, "aren't you always keeping him on a short leash?"

"Y-Yani..." I groan quietly. It was going so well, I actually thought it would've been fine until we got to class, but I was wrong.

"Don't compare me to your unnatural feelings towards your brother."

"What do you mean unnatural!" my sister yells, clenching her fists as her eyes bore holes into Tessen. "Why is it so strange that I actually care about my brother! Aren't **female dogs** like you supposed to understand loyalty to family?" she asks, adding emphasis to 'female dog', hinting at the words more vulgar meaning.

Tessen growls, her fangs showing a bit, but before she said anything she looked to me. She had an apologetic look, almost like the look you'd imagine on a dog that realized it was causing its human partner problems. She sighed and scratched her head. "Forget it. Hey, Nagaku," she called.

I snapped my head to her, utterly astounded that either of them would, or even could stop fighting without adult interference. "Y-yeah?" I heard myself reply. I nervously glanced over to my sister. She still seemed aggravated, but wasn't saying anything, though she looked ready to attack if Tessen said something unacceptable.

"You're excited about getting teams today too, right?" After a moment, I nodded, the shock starting to wear off. "Well, have you given any thought to who you would want on you're team?"

"Um... w-well, not really..." I mumble, fidgeting a bit as I thought it over, fiddling my thumbs over each other, "but maybe... Yani and..."

"Besides you're sister, Nagaku," Tessen added.

"Why not me?" Sayani snapped, obviously trying her best to keep calm.

Tessen smiled a large, toothy grin. "Not that a brother like this wouldn't want a sister like you on his team, of course, but they try not to put people with the same kekki genkai on the same team. So that means you two will probably be on separate teams."

"Oh... well, uh..." I mumble, thinking through all of our classmates. "Maybe... Chouza and... You, Tessen?"

"Are you just picking me because you think I'll be mad if you don't?" she asks. I fidget under her gaze, knowing she guessed right. "Don't just pick me, pick who you really want to be on a team with."

I sigh, and look to the sky. "Maybe... Shigure?"

"Shigure?" Yani asks like she can't believe my choice. "She doesn't really like you, Gaku, why would you want to be teamed with her?"

"I don't know..." I mumble. I'm not really sure, but she seems like she has more to offer than being a lazy, cloud watching genius girl who thinks boys are troublesome.

"Well," Tessen started, adding a small skip/hop to her walk, "if I got to choose anyone to be on teams with, it would be you, Nagaku!" I heard my sister make a noise, what sounded like a growl, but otherwise she stayed quiet. "And, well... I don't know, no one else really seems interesting enough, you know?"

"Yeah, yeah, you done yet?" Yani asked abruptly.

"Why," Tessen started, slowly moving closer to us as she talked, "Do you have a crush you want to be teamed with? Something you want to tell us?" At this point she was mere inches away from Yani, grinning. "Someone you really really really really real-gruk!" she stopped abruptly when Yani palmed her face and pushed her back to where she was.

"No! I was tired of hearing you talk, nothing more!" She sounded irritated. It's no surprise; I don't know if it's obvious at this point, but my sister really doesn't like Tessen. It goes back to the first year of the academy, that's how deeply rooted it is.

So there's no one you'd want on your team?" Tessen asked, rubbing her face.

"Besides Gaku, not really. Almost anyone else would be fine."

"Then, who DON'T you want on your team?" she pressed, trying to get something out of my sister.

"Well, you, for starters."

"Feelin' the love." Tessen responded instantly, nodding a bit.

"And... Hsien-Ko, I guess."

"Yeah... but I can't really imagine anyone who would want her on their team." Hsien-Ko... yeah, no one in the class really likes her. There was a rumor going around that she was a demon! They say she transformed in the middle of town one day, that she had wings, claws, and an eye in her forehead. Of course, no one really believes those rumors (how could that even be possible in the first place), everyone pretty much doesn't like her because of how she acts... well, I'm pretty sure I'll see her soon. She passed the Genin test too, if just barely, so she is a ninja now.

We are pretty close now, I can see the gates and the academy over it. "HEY!" I hear Tessen shout, unexpectedly. I look over to where she is waving, and see one of the quietest kids in class.

He's not like me, just shy, or like Shigure, finding unnecessary talking too troublesome, but it just seems like he doesn't like to talk. Only me and a couple others in the class have ever actually heard his voice, as he doesn't talk in class even when asked a question from our sensei. His name was Akimichi Chouza. He stood by the Academy gates, slowly snacking on a bag of chips.

"Hey, Chouza!" Tessen shouted, running towards him. Whenever I see her run, it always reminds me of those dogs that get over excited, and run kinda wobbly and floppy. It's very strange.

Chouza looked over to us, stopped eating his chips, and gave each of us a single nod of acknowledgment. He had some new gear on, too... ninja gear! He wore what he called traditional, family obligated clothing. His hands and legs were wrapped in white bandages. He wore a green light jacket, standard for his family, with a white shirt underneath. The shirt had the Kanji for "Serious" on it in red (真剣). He also wore gray shorts, and his hair was tied up by his ninja headband to form one big, brown spike of hair on his head. But, the cool new ninja gear he had on was for his shins and hands. He had silver shin guards on, with cool sharp looking downward-curved spikes on them! Two per shin! He also had these really cool looking leather gloves that went halfway up his forearm and had these really cool looking iron knuckles on them!

"Hey Chouza," Tessen repeats as she stops just in front of him, "If you could pick anyone in the class to be on teams with, who would you pick?"

He seemed to think about it for a moment, his eyes moving to the left for a few seconds, then to the right for a few seconds, looking at nothing in particular, then back to Tessen. He just shook his head.

"What, you don't have anyone you want to team with?" she asked, and was answered with another head shake. "Well, that's no fun... alright then, we'll see you later."

He nodded, once to each of us, then went back to eating his chips. None of us said anything until we made it through the gate and a decent way inot the Academy yard. "How come he's always like that?" Yani asks. She always seems to be unnerved by his silence, though she never likes to talk about it.

"What, quiet?" Tessen responded, turning to her. "Nagaku is quiet." They both turned to me.

I was caught off guard by the sudden attention. "U-um..." I mumbled, looking away as I fiddled with my sleeve.

"Gaku doesn't count!" my sister snapped, seemingly offended at the thought of my being compared to Chouza. "He's quiet, but he's not creepy, and he does say stuff! He also has subtle things that normal people don't notice that tell how he feels, he's not just a wall of nothing."

"I'm pretty sure his family would say the same thing about Chouza. He just acts like that way towards people he isn't really close to. Like, I bet Nagaku acts differently at home, doesn't he?"

"Well... yeah, he does... I guess you're right." Yani admitted. It was almost surreal seeing them getting along this well. Maybe it was a sign of becoming adults with these Hitai-ate's, becoming ninja's. Maybe I've grown a little, too? No... probably not...

As we made our way toward the big academy building, on towards the classroom where we would be assigned our teams, we saw two girls. They were arguing about something. We couldn't hear too well from here, but I could make out the words "Dog" and "Stole" before they noticed us and stopped talking.

"Oh, hey guys!" they cried in unison. They jogged up to us, an identical masking smile on the both of them. Apparently it was something important, and the Yamanaka twins, Izumi and Izuki, didn't want us to know anything about it. It's a natural trait for Byakugan users to notice things normal eyes would miss, gestures that reveal a person's unspoken emotions, but I don't know if Yani noticed it. I'm a little better at reading people than she is. I don't say anything, of course, partly because I can't find a point I want to speak up at, and partly because I'm not good at asking people intruding questions.

Izumi and Izuki... neither of them had any new Ninja gear like Chouza, unfortunately, and they had the same ninja clothes they've been wearing the past few weeks. The outfits themselves were nearly identical, as well, with only two differences between them. They both wore identical baggy light blue cargo pants with identical light blue shirts (AN: sorry, I can't explain them, but their like what the older Ino in the anime/manga wears, the no stomach and raised collar thing, but without the zipper on the front). And they both had the metal part of their headband fused into their turtleneck-piece-things. The only differences was that Izumi wore those ninja bandage wrappings under her shirt, covering her stomach and her arms down to her mid-upper arm, while Izuki wore ninja mesh armor underneath her clothes, covering the same areas (stomach and mid-upper arm). And the only other difference was a kanji symbol they had on the back of their shirts. Izuki had the Kanji for Heaven on her back(天), while Izumi had the Kanji for Earth(地). They both wore their platinum blonde hair the same way, though, in a long pony tail with some neatly groomed hair coming in front to cover some of their face. Their strangest trait was their eye colors, though. Izuki had blue eyes, which she compared to the Heavens, while Izumi had brown eyes that she compared to the earth.

"Hey, have you two seen my brother?" Tessen asks. This time, their expressions were a little more obvious. Izuki makes an irritated noise, looking off to the side, and Izumi scratched her head sheepishly, chuckling awkwardly.

"W-well... yeah, we saw him earlier," Izumi admitted, sounding a bit dodgey.

"But he's not here yet," Izuki finished, still sounding irritated.

"Do you know who's here at the academy already?" Yani asked. I don't think she was looking for anyone in particular, she just wanted to know who she had to protect me against...

"Well, besides our sister," Izumi started, taking up a thoughtful pose as she stared at the ceiling. "And besides Chouza outside," Izuki added, unintentionally imitating her sister's pose exactly. "You three are the first ones here," they explained in unison.

"Hmm... alright," Tessen said, scratching her neck behind her ear for a moment. "You two go on ahead," she said, addressing me and my sister, "I'll come back after I find Teiru."

We watched as she trotted off, an over excited puppy coming to mind again. "Alright, come on Gaku, let's go take our seats before more people come and take up all the back row seats."

She headed into the classroom, and I followed her after giving the Izumi and Izuki a parting bow. When I made it into the classroom, I saw Yani motioning me towards her at the topmost and rightmost seat of the class. She always made me sit there, it was the "safest place for me", but it was fine. It's not like there was anywhere else I really wanted to sit anyway.

I started towards her, and noticed that Shigure was sleeping in the row in front of my seat. To be more precise, the very seat in front of mine. She changes seats every day in class, she says she picks the spot in the room that gets the best breeze from outside, and today I guess that was the one in front of mine. I tip-toed past her, not wanting to disturb her, and sat beside my sister.

"An eventful morning, huh Gaku?" Yani asked with a smile as she made sure I was securely in my seat.

"Y-yeah, eventful..." a funny little inside joke. It was pretty fine so far, we only ran into a handful of other students. Maybe because only the ones who became Genin will be coming today, or maybe because we left early, but there are normally a lot more people that, you know... talk to me and stuff. Yani knows I don't like talking to others, that it makes me uncomfortable, so it's kinda like sarcasm, I guess...

"Tessen didn't bother you, did she?" she asked me, messing with my hair in an attempt to fix it. I just sat still and let her.

"No, Tessen was fine." And she was. I don't have much of a problem with Tessen, or anyone else for that matter, it was more my sister. And it isn't even Tessen as a person that Yani doesn't like, it's the fact that she doesn't act calm and predictable. It's that she goes off wildly in different directions at random intervals makes Yani nervous, and she doesn't want her near me because those actions could potential cause me harm.

"Oh... you two are here..." we heard, coming from in front of us. We looked down to see Shigure. She was looking at us, a dismissive glaze in her eyes.

"Yeah, we came early for the back seats," my sister explained, rather bluntly for a morning greeting. Though, Shigure didn't look all rainbows and sunshine herself.

"I'm sure you did," she mumbled, standing up to stretch. She was pretty small compared to most of us, about 4 foot 11, the word petite fitting her to a T. We heard a few of her joints crack as she stretched, and I noticed that she didn't have any new ninja gear on, just like her sisters. And, like her sisters, Sabaku Shigure wore her hair and clothes the same way she had been, but for her it was a bit longer than a few weeks (about 3 months). Her hair was like it always was, dark brown and reaching down her back about five inches from her waist. She had shorts on, really baggy ones with many pockets, that reached down to her shins. She had the same tinted mesh shirt on underneath her vest, a small vest that was a deep purple (AN: like Shikimaru's genin vest) with her headband wrapped around her left shoulder... wait a minute... it wasn't the same mesh undershirt... no, she had gotten a new one!

"Are you checking me out, Uzumaki?" I heard her ask. I looked up to her more irritated than usual face. It took me a moment to realize what she thought I was doing. I felt myself blush deeply, my face burning out of control as I adverted my eyes and quickly started messing with the sleeves on my jacket. Of course I wasn't ch-ch-checking her out! I was just admiring her new undershirt!

"G-Gaku...!" Yani whisper yelled at me. I was far too embarrassed to respond with anything more than single syllable stutters. "W-well, what was he supposed to do with you flaunting your chest in front of him like that!"

"So your saying it's my fault your brother is a pervert?" Shigure asked slowly.

"N-no! He's not a pervert! And you have no right to call anyone a pervert when you walk around with a practically transparent shirt underneath a jacket that barely covers anything!"

They just stared at each other for a moment, looking like they were ready to fight (more Yani than Shigure). I swallowed deeply, and spoke up. "Y-y-your... your shirt..." I said as loud as I could, barely louder than a mumble.

"What?" Shigure asked, both girls looking to me. I averted my eyes again, I still couldn't maintain eye contact.

"I-I was l-looking at your s-shirt..." I said, a bit louder than when I first spoke.

Shigure made a sound, what sounded like a mix between snickering and chuckling, and sat back down in her seat. "Is that what you call it? It doesn't matter what you call it, it's still—"

"It's n-new, isn't it?" I asked, stopping her sentence short.

She didn't say anything. For a moment, she didn't even move. Then she tilted her head slightly and turned back to me. "What makes you think that?"

"C-could you, um... s-stand up again...?" I asked. She didn't move for a few seconds, and then she stood up and turned to me. I felt my cheeks flush again, but I stood up too and showed her. "H-here," I said, pointing to a spot on her stomach beside her belly button, "Here, here, and here," I added, pointing to a spot just under her jacket on her left side, a spot just over her right hip, and a spot in the middle of her chest, "a-and... h-here..." I said, touching a spot halfway hidden under her jacket, just underneath her collar. I looked up to her face, perfectly still and expressionless. "T-there used t-to be broken links in the mesh..."

"... how do you know I didn't just have it mended?"

I pulled my hand off of her, fiddling with my jacket sleeve again. "Y-your... your collar and waistband... they're new. It's the same color... b-but it's fresher and not worn out at all..."

She didn't say anything. I fidgeted faster, flushing a little harder. It felt like my face must have been bright pink. "Not even my sisters, the fashion freaks they are, noticed that." none of us said anything for another moment. "I guess boys aren't always useless," she said before sitting back down and resting her head again, probably to go back to sleep.

I glanced over to Yani... she had a curious face on, one I couldn't quite read. It looked like she was thinking about something, but I couldn't tell what or what it was making her feel. It was strange.

"Do you have something to read?" I asked softly, trying to change the subject. She snapped her head to me, looking confused for a moment.

"Oh, um... Sure." she pulled a book from her hidden ninja pouch on her back (hidden underneath her jacket). It was a small red book with a blue circle on the back of it. It was one of dad's books. He said he started out ghost writing for his sensei when he was 14, and he's continued writing ever since. This was one of his latest books, his latest in this particular series, and it was my favorite so far. That's why Yani's carrying it; she always keeps three books, my current favorite, her current favorite, and a classic book that we have both read cover-to-cover countless times.

I open the book, turning to one of my favorite scenes. It's about how a young ninja named Riku works together with another ninja called Gouzen, one who controls sand, to fight enemy ninja's. Our father told us that Riku is loosely based off of him, and Gouzen was loosely based on uncle Gaara (which we could have figured out on our own). This scene never happened, almost none of what he writes happened (Daddy thinks using personal events would cheapen what readers paid for), but he writes stories so well it's hard to believe they aren't happening to the reader at that moment!

I read through the scene, envisioning the epic battle, submerging myself through the sights smells and sounds, into the heart of the scene, from it's flashy beginning all the way to its nail-biting conclusion! The Sand ninja, after the battle is over, is surprise attacked by a ninja who was seriously injured in the fight, mistaken for dead. However, before his blade can reach him, Riku throws himself in front to shield his friend and is pierced through the chest! The book ends as Riku coughs up blood, sliding further down the enemy ninja's blade. I so badly want to know what happens next, if Riku is really dead, but whenever I ask Dad, he just grins and says "No, that would spoil the next book!"

After I sigh, knowing I won't know the outcome for another 6 or 7 months at the earliest, I look up. The classroom is now filled. I hadn't noticed anyone come in while I was reading, but the classroom is packed with kids from several different classes, all getting hyped over their new promotion and how they'll get their own team and sensei. I look around and see the Yamanaka Twins, Tessen and her brother, Teiru, I see Chouza sitting down towards the front, and I see Shigure, sleeping in front of me. My sister is still sitting besides me, so, all that leaves is... Hsien-Ko... she's the only one from our class that still isn't here. I wonder what happened? There's only a minute or two before Iruka-sensei normally gets here, if the clock on the wall is reliable. Maybe she got held back as an academy student for some reason? Or, more likely, she got in trouble again.

As I wondered about our missing classmate, I noticed Tessen and her younger brother Teiru coming towards us (me and Yani). It looked like Yani was still enthralled in her book, which I could see would be ending after another two pages, so I decided to get up and talk to them myself.

I saw them for the first time today, Inuzuka Teiru and his dog, Kiromaru. His dog was different from his sisters. It was a little bigger despite being younger, and it had yellow paws, yellow chest fur, a yellow tipped tail, and a yellow triangle on his head. Teiru himself wasn't wearing anything new, the same thing (basically) that he had been wearing since the beginning of last year. It was a big black jacket with white fur lining the end of the sleeves, the hood, and the bottom of the jacket. He also had dark green shorts on. He, like his sister, had two red triangles on his face, one per cheek.

"Hey, Nagaku, how've ya been?" Teiru asks, clasping me on the shoulder.

I glance down to his hand. "U-um... fine?" he pulled his hand back.

"Sorry, sorry," he apologized, "Forgot you didn't like to be touched."

"N-no, it's fine," I assured him. It was only a minor annoyance when I knew someone as well as Teiru.

" So, Nagaku, snything interesting happen after I left?" Tessen asked while stretching, unknowingly stretching in almost the same way Shigure did 20 minutes ago. I blushed.

"N-n-no... not r-really..." I lied, averting my eyes as I felt my face flush hotter. It's quite easy for me to read expressions and body language, almost like a natural born knowledge of it all, but I couldn't hide my own inner feelings if it was to save my life.

"What?" Tessen asked, her ears perking up as she closed in on me. "What happened? What, what, tell me!"

"N-nothing happened...!" I told her, shrinking into myself as I started tugging on my sleeve. I looked so far away from her eyes my head was almost turned completely around.

"Sis, I don't think he's going to tell you," Teiru said, thankfully coming to my defense. I don't really know how to deal with these situations without Yani... I'll have to treat him to something later.

"I know he doesn't want to tell me, that's why I'm forcing it out of him," Tessen countered. She's... not backing down! Help! "Did it have to do with Shigure?"

I heard myself groan. She made a victorious 'humph!' sounding noise before pressing onward. Doesn't she have anyone else to talk to! "What Happened with Shigure? Did you look through her clothes with your Byakugan or something?"

"Of course he didn't!" I heard the (blessed) sound of my sister, jumping from her seat to stand between me and Tessen. "And it has nothing to do with you!"

Tessen made a 'Tsk' sound before taking a step back. "What happened, Control Freak, sleeping on the job? Don't you have to be in his business every second of every day?"

"I don't want to hear that from the girl who can't enter or leave rooms without her brother beside her!"

"ARGH! You know that's a part of my obsessive compulsive disorder, I have no control over that!"

"Dude," I heard from my left, "Why are they so hot-headed while we're so cool with each other?" I look over to see Teiru and Kiromaru standing relaxed beside me. "They can never even stay civil until the bell. You understand, right, Nagaku?"

"Y-yeah..." I whispered. I did understand, I understood completely. It would have just been another minute or two, but I should have known from the beginning that it would end like this. It always ends like this.

They continued to fight, throwing verbal attack after verbal attack, until it looked like they'd actually start a fight (which isn't out of the ordinary). But, at that very moment, the class door opened and Iruka-sensei walked in. "Everybody, be seated and be quiet!" he called through the class, his normal saying to calm down the kids in class. The only two who didn't hear him and do as he directed (excluding Shigure, but she was already seated), were my sister and Tessen. "UZUMAKI, INUZUKA!" he shouted as he noticed them. They snapped out of their fight, and hurried to their seats.

He looked around the room for a moment before looking back to the door. He waved towards someone to enter. It was Hsien-Ko... but she was different. Not her clothes, but... her... she normally had a cocky, slightly sadistic grin on her face. Like she knew she was better than you, and had to make you know it (despite her poor grades). She walked like nothing and no one around her was even worth considering. But now she looked... empty. Had she been crying? Her eyes look red and her cheeks puffy... what happened? She said nothing, unlike when she normally entered the class and shouts "What's up, bitches?" (for which she was regularly scolded). she just walked in, and took a seat in the front and put her head down. A quick glance around the room showed that I was the only one, besides my sister and Shigure, to notice her abnormal behavior. Shigure wasn't sleeping anymore, she was sitting up, watching Hsien-Ko.

"Alright, listen up! You are all Genin now. You are ninja's of Konohagakure. You are no longer children, and, from this point on, you will be treated as such. Now, we'll be splitting you up into groups of three and assigning you to a Jounin sensei, as some of you already know. Everyone pay attention: I'm announcing the Teams."

The whole classroom was quiet as he flipped through pages of a clipboard he was holding. "Team One shall be... Akimichi Chouza, Inuzuka Tessen, and Uzumaki Sayani!"

Two shouts of "WHAT!" exploded through the classroom. One was from... well, it was pretty obvious who shouted, both of them, but it was my sister and Tessen. They glared at each other. I noticed Chouza, off to the side. He didn't look at all fazed by his team, and just sat quietly eating his chips as Iruka went through the teams, until he got to the fifth team.

"Team Five shall be... Mitarashi Hsien-Ko, Sabaku Shigure, and Uzumaki Nagaku!"

I saw Shigure look back at me. She had an annoyed expression as she sighed, then turned to look at a small bird that had perched itself in one of the classroom windows. I started tugging on my sleeve... not only did I lose my sister, but now I'm paired with the two most difficult people in class... I look down to Hsien-Ko. She's... glaring at me...? Wh-what did I do? I see a few tears well in her eyes before she turns away from me again. What on earth happened to her?

Team Six passed, and then came then seventh. "Team Seven will be... Inuzuka Teiru, Yamanaka Izuki, and Yamanaka Izumi!"

"HELL YEAH!" I saw Teiru say. Well... he didn't so much say it as jump out of his seat and pump his fists in the air as he danced around in a little circle. He sort of has a crush on Izumi.

Iruka went through the rest of the teams, stopping after he announced Team Ten, three people I hadn't heard of before. "Alright, that's all! You all have a short break, use this time to talk with your teams if you aren't already familiar with them. Meet back here in 30 minutes for your Jounin sensei, okay? Dismissed!"

as soon as he said dismissed, Hsien-Ko jumped out of her chair and disappeared through the door way... something serious is going on with her. I hope it's nothing too serious. Well, I'm sure I'll find out soon enough, we are a team now... oh boy.

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><p>Author's Box<p>

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><p>So? was it awesome or was it freaking awesome? Tell me about, it, i'd like to know! Just leave me a review! Also, It's hard for me to write when I have little-to-no reviews. This took me several months of gradual work to accomplish. I don't like working that long on a single chapter, but if I get... at lest 4 reviews (come on, that isn't asking a lot), I'll feel energized enough to continue this story. And the next chapter will be out in a matter of a week or two (if the reviews are bare minimum)! Also, remember earlier when Sayani mentioned something about Tessen keeping her brother on a short leash? She was referring to her OCD thing. She can't enter or leave rooms without someone has a lot of affection for (family, mainly). Wherever she goes, she drags Teiru with her so she can go in and out of places. also, fans of my story Team Naruto might recognize two of the original names in this story. did you notice them?<p>

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><p>DON'T ACCEPT COOKIES FROM STRANGERS!<p> 


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